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GAIA

Posted on Aug 6th, 2007 by David : Explorer David

GAIAM, ZAADZ, LIME MEDIA & CONSCIOUS ENLIGHTENMENT CREATE UNIFIED SOURCE FOR LOHAS

Broomfield, CO; New York, NY; Washington, DC; Los Angeles and Santa Monica, CA, August 6, 2007Gaiam, Inc. (NASDAQ: GAIA), Zaadz, Inc., Revolution, LLC, LIME Media and Conscious Enlightenment, Inc. today announced a unified LOHAS community under the  Gaia.com(unity) banner. Gaiam will launch the Gaia.com site in fall of this year.

“Gaiam’s vision for Gaia com(unity) is to become the global community of like-minded people that aspire to effect positive change on the planet,” said Jirka Rysavy, founder and CEO of Gaiam. “Gaiam coined the term LOHAS (Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability) in 1999 to describe the global movement of expanding consciousness and growing awareness of personal and planetary health. The term is now used worldwide to describe this movement and magazines in several countries carry the LOHAS name. With this new community we are entering the next stage of LOHAS development and would like to extend an invitation to entrepreneurs around the world, who are passionate about personal and planetary wellness and authenticity, to join us.”

Zaadz(www.zaadz.com) Zaadz is the leading social networking site in the LOHAS space with 85,000 members and 850,000 unique visitors per month. Zaadz was founded by Brian Johnson, who previously created the world’s largest social networking site for amateur sports (eteamz.com), which profitably serves three million teams around the world.

“Zaadz was created to inspire and empower people to be the change they want to see and to change the world in the process,” said Brian Johnson, founder and CEO of Zaadz. “We’re excited to combine forces with a group of companies who share our mission of positive change and I have no doubt that together we’ll accelerate the rate of change we can affect in the world.”

LIME(www.lime.com) Lime is a multimedia lifestyle company with multiple platforms focused on leading a healthier, greener, and more balanced lifestyle. LIME is available on broadband television, SIRIUS Satellite Radio channel 114, on demand with cable providers nationally and at lime.com on the web and mobile phones. Lime.com has 2,200,000 unique visitors per month and 200,000 daily newsletters. LIME previously acquired Wisdom TV and has a library of over 1,000 hours of visual content. LIME was majority owned by Revolution.

"When we got involved with LIME almost three years ago, none of the major media companies were focused on sustainability and we saw an opportunity to launch LIME as an independent media brand," said Steve Case, founder and CEO of Revolution LLC.  "Now that the 'green' movement is becoming more mainstream, we concluded it made sense to participate in the creation of a unified LOHAS community and platform with our longtime partner Gaiam."

Conscious Enlightenment(www.cenlightenment.com) Conscious Enlightenment is an on-line and off-line based community that owns and operates the Enlightenment Card, a socially conscious credit card, Conscious Choice and Whole Life magazines (with distribution in metropolitan cities from Chicago to Los Angeles), Yogamates.com, a social network and video channel and MonthlyYogadvd.com, a DVD and online video streaming subscription club.

“Conscious Enlightenment was created to educate people about the alternatives that exist to create a more sustainable and peaceful world,” said Christopher Miglino, founder and CEO of Conscious Enlightenment. “Gaiam has been a leader in the LOHAS and cultural creative space for some time now, and we are excited about the synergies that exist between our companies and our ability to reach a broader audience.”

Gaiam(www.gaiam.com) Gaiam is a lifestyle media company catering to people who value personal development, natural health, ecological lifestyles and inspirational entertainment. Gaiam has approximately eight million direct customers, including over 100,000 paid subscribers to its community and subscription clubs. Gaiam's home media is carried by almost 70,000 retail stores in the U.S., the widest direct distribution coverage in the country for any visual media provider. Gaiam also distributes approximately 20 million catalogs per year.

Check out the Zaadz Team Blog for more.
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Kopali is Hiring!

Posted on Aug 13th, 2007 by David : Explorer David

My friends over at Kopali Organics are hiring as they expand their business. I can't think of a better place to work or better people to work for (well... maybe except for zaadz :). These guys are fun, passionate, and very conscious. Here's your opportunity to change the world while you work.
Read more below.

* SELECT POSITIONS *

- Chief Operating Officer
- Product Developer
- Marketing Manager
- Regional Sales Account Representatives
- Assistant to Co-CEO
- And more

ABOUT KOPALI ORGANICS
- Kopali Organics is a high-growth, mission-driven company that produces, markets and
distributes organic fairly-traded food and products from around the world. Products are
“Good for you, good for the farmers, and good for the planet we all share.”
- Kopali’s products are sold in Whole Foods Market stores. Product range from packaged
non-perishable groceries to fresh produce, from supplements to body care, and more.
Products are artisan and premium, and are on the cutting edge of health and flavor trends,
using a minimal number of pure ingredients, and including next generation superfoods.
- Kopali is moving from revenue-generating proof-of-concept phase to fully scaled-up
deployment, where it will sell millions of dollars worth of dozens of products, and in so
doing impact millions of consumers and farmers, serving as a model for a new paradigm of
conscious capitalism and sustainable living. This process is at an exciting tipping point after
a recent capitalization of the company and a series of large national multi-product and
multi-category orders; Kopali is extremely well positioned in the exploding natural products
industry.
- Kopali was founded by Zak and Zev Zaidman (brothers) and Stephen and Norman Brooks
(father and son) from an off-the-grid sustainable permaculture farm in Costa Rica, and
maintains its entrepreneurial spirit and commitment to mission and vision as it further
develops into a world-class example of excellence in business execution.

WHO
- Kopali seeks team members who are entrepreneurial, intelligent, creative, driven, open
and collaborative, and committed to achieving extraordinary results. Multiple positions are
available in all functional areas of the company including Operations/Logistics,
Sales/Marketing, Product Development, etc. All positions provide significant opportunities
for growth.

* SELECT JOB DESCRIPTIONS *

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER: Seeking experienced, proven leader from the food / beverage / consumer products industry to grow and manage global team. A strong combination of large-scale experience and entrepreneurial drive is critical. COO will design and implement global sourcing / manufacturing / purchasing / packaging / distribution /
logistics / quality assurance strategy and other company processes,and manage day-to-day
operations. Founders are eager to welcome this key member of the Executive Team. Open
to bringing in CEO in lieu of COO, with experience to handle all supply chain responsibilities
described above as well as steer all other areas of the business, including Sales/Marketing,
Finance, Product Development, etc. Operations are currently based in Miami with offices
in Mexico and NYC, and company is open to exploring alternate locations with COO before
full Operations team is hired.

PRODUCT DEVELOPER: Seeking resourceful, detail- and process-oriented innovator and
problem-solver to project manage and develop healthy, sustainable, natural food /
beverage / body care products from conception to shelf, from brainstorming to sourcing to
planning to execution to distribution. Role involves: conceiving, refining, positioning and
market testing new and existing products; sourcing ingredients and establishing strong
relationships with suppliers, farmers, manufacturers and packaging vendors; considering
and managing costs and pricing; coordinating packaging including design and production;
and managing regulatory compliance, logistics, and quality control. Requires in-depth
knowledge of food and natural products trends and retail market. Familiarity with sensory
and marketing customer research is desired. Fluent Spanish is preferred. Location is
flexible although Miami, NYC, or Mexico City preferred. Travel is required.

MARKETING MANAGER: Seeking detail-oriented, motivated executor, strong at multitasking, with creative vision and strong oral, written, visual, marketing, and public
relations communication skills, to conceive, design, budget, plan, implement and manage
national and regional marketing and promotional programs, in-store merchandising, and
other plans to drive retail product sales as well as increase brand value and consumer
awareness and loyalty. Requires passion for food, and knowledge of natural products
trends and retailing as well as general consumer marketing, branding, and retail sales.
Experience working with creative services is critical, along with a strong design and
communication sensibility. Familiarity with Whole Foods Market organizational structure,
procedures and policies, and team members preferred. Involves establishing and directing
relationships with regional/store Marketing Managers, managing Kopali Sales Account
Representatives, in-store sampling/demo efforts, etc. Location is flexible although NYC or
Miami are preferred.

REGIONAL SALES ACCOUNT REPRESENTATIVES: Seeking inspired, persuasive, persistent, high-energy, self-motivated, results-oriented relationship-managers to work with Whole Foods Market Marketing Managers, Merchandisers, and other team members to ensure that the Kopali message reaches important decision-makers and consumers. Role involves implementing in-store merchandising, marketing and promotional plans and programs to drive sales as well as increase brand value and consumer awareness and loyalty. Also involves serving as an ambassador for the Kopali vision and brand, and directly promoting the company’s organic, sustainable, fairly traded products, interfacing directly with
consumers and driving sales. This is a critical and exciting time of growth for Kopali: all
company team members from CEO on down are playing a very hands-on role, and Account
Representatives will be expected to do the same on the “front lines”. As sales goals are
achieved, by each individual Account Representative and by the company, this role will
evolve into a strategic marketing and management position with demo team members and
Assistant Account Representatives added in each region. Base salary plus performance
bonus. Multiple locations.

ASSISTANT TO CO-CEO: Seeking organized, goal-oriented, hard-working, quick-thinking,
excellent oral and written communicator to support and work closely with company Co-
CEO. Successful and impressive academic career, leadership experience and work history
required, along with ability to work independently and exercise strong judgment and
follow-through. Role involves providing exceptional, detailed administrative support,
including scheduling, travel planning, expense documentation, etc, as well as drafting highlevel correspondence and presentations, conducting research, and managing projects in critical areas such as public relations/branding, event planning, strategy, business
development etc. Offers tremendous opportunity for growth and advancement. Position
based in NYC.

OPERATIONAL / ADMINISTRATIVE ASSOCIATE: Seeking highly-organized, detail-oriented team-player able to multi-task, meet deadlines, and effectively communicate with important customers, suppliers and service providers. Role involves important tasks
involving invoicing, accounting, purchase orders, shipping and inventory management, etc.
Excellent computer skills required, along with significant administrative experience or
some finance or operations experience. Degree in Finance/Accounting preferred. Spanish
fluency preferred. Position based in Miami.

KOPALI EVANGELISTS, INTERNS, AND OTHER VOLUNTEER POSITIONS AVAILABLE: There are many other ways to get involved and to support Kopali’s mission to create a more
compassionate and sustainable world through conscious commerce. Please contact us if you would like to help out!

FURTHER POSITIONS AVAILABLE AS COMPANY EXPANDS.

We would love to hear from you about how you might join us as we grow our company and
help create a more compassionate and sustainable world. Please email: jobs@kopali.com
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Two Choices

Posted on Aug 23rd, 2007 by David : Explorer David

This email just showed up in my inbox. It brought tears to my eyes as I read through the story. It’s amazing how sending an email can have such an affect. Fortunately for me, I receive many more emails that are meaningful compared to emails that contain obscene jokes and nonsense, but it is astounding how these different types of emails can make a difference in our experience long after we step away from our computers. This is one that gives me hope, makes me smile, and is well worth sending on, imho.

We make choices everyday, but how often do we actually pause and think about how these choices affect everyone around us, which is to say, how do these choices affect the world? There’s a tremendous amount of beauty and hope in this world and it’s up to us to spread it. It really doesn’t take much; sometimes it’s just as simple as a smile. :c) The opportunity is always present and who knows… maybe you'll do something that makes someone’s day, or something that even changes his or her life.

Here’s a great example:


What would you do? You make the choice. Don't look for a punch line, there isn't one. Read it anyway.

The question is: Would you have made the same choice? 




At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children, the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated staff, he offered a question: "When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the natural order of things in my son?" 



The audience was stilled by the query.

The father continued. "I believe, that when a child like Shay, physically and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people treat that child." 



Then he told the following story:



Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were playing baseball. Shay asked, "Do you think they'll let me play?" Shay's father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play, it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be accepted by others in spite of his handicaps. 



Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and said, "We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth inning." 



Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be next at bat. 



At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat. Everyone knew that a hit was all but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly, much less connect with the ball. 



However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay. As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball right back to the pitcher. 



The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been out and that would have been the end of the game.



Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started yelling, "Shay, run to first! Run to first!" Never in his life had Shay ever run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline, wide-eyed and startled. 



Everyone yelled, "Run to second, run to second!" Catching his breath, Shay awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right f elder had the ball ... the smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intentions so he, too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman' s head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him circled the bases toward home. 



All were screaming, "Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay"



Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, "Run to third! Shay, run to third!" 



As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on their feet screaming, "Shay, run home! Run home!" Shay ran to home, stepped on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the game for his team. 



"That day", said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face, "the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity into this world.”



Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day! 



AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces. 



If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're probably sorting out the people in your address book who aren't the "appropriate" ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the "natural order of things." So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little bit colder in the process? 



A wise man once said every society is judged by how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.


You now have two choices:

1. Do Nothing
2. Forward this story or this link: http://david.zaadz.com/blog/2007/8/two_choices

May your day, be a Shay Day

(Source unknown)

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Tagged with: choice, email, shay, decency, love, humanity